Nature Conservation

“One of the most important utopian novels of the twentieth century that still has very important lessons to teach us. It will always convey to perfection the wild optimism of that ….

Tom Brown, Jr., is America's most acclaimed outdoorsman, tracker, and teacher. When he was eight he met Stalking Wolf, an Apache elder who taught the young man how to survive in the wild, and more importantly, how to value our place in the natural order. For more than three decades, Tom Brown, Jr., has shared these insights with the world through teaching, writing, and film. Now, for the first time, he has detailed actions that each of us can take to help heal our ailing planet.

Yank! The giant panda strips bamboo leaves with its sharp claws. Weighing more than 300 pounds, this is one huge bear! Listeners are introduced to physical features, behavior, habitat, and life cycle to find out why giant pandas are awesome!

This books looks at what happens to old clothes when you throw them in the trash, and then looks at alternative things that the listener could make out of them instead of throwing the old clothes away.

Climate change affects many regions with hotter and drier weather, and forest fires are a growing problem. Learn how hungry animals might help reduce wildfires. Fires need fuel, oxygen and heat to start a flame. The forest floors are covered with dry grass, dead wood, and bark called duff–fire fuel! Learn how conservationists are using sheep, goats, beavers and other animals to reduce fires!

Around the world, many people gather water from sources that are dirty and contain bacteria. Here are some easy solutions to help filter water!

Sometimes, preservation and conservation need to occur on a larger scale. Oceana, Greenpeace, and the World Wildlife Fund are dedicated to protecting resources all over the world—especially resources that all people share.

It takes commitment to overcome interests that stand in the way of protecting the environment. Meet three people who weren't afraid to speak up to protect natural areas—and us.

Fungi are everywhere. Most are harmless, some are helpful. A few are killers. Collectively, infectious fungi are the most devastating agents of disease on Earth, and a fungus that can persist in the environment without its host is here for the long haul. In gripping, accessible prose, Emily Monosson documents how changing climate, trade, and travel are making us all more vulnerable to invasion.

Passionate about the environment? If so, an environmental club might be the right fit for you! Find out what it takes to join an environmental club or start your own, including information on membership, meetings, and activities.

Plants and animals are in trouble! All over the world, they are affected by how we treat their environment. Learning some ways to change how you interact them and their environment, such as limiting your trash and using recycled products, can help them! See why conservation is important.

More than 70 percent of Earth is covered in water. Yet only about 3 percent of it is freshwater that people can use. Every year, parts of the world suffer through severe droughts, and millions of people don’t have easy access to clean drinking water. Why is there a shortage of clean and healthy water? Max Axion and the Society of Super Scientists travel around the world to learn the reasons behind the global water crisis. Young listeners can tag along to discover what causes water scarcity and find out ways they can help preserve this precious resource.

John Muir was an early proponent of a view we still hold today—that much of California was pristine, untouched wilderness before the arrival of Europeans. But as this book demonstrates, what Muir was really seeing when he admired the grand vistas of Yosemite and the gold and purple flowers carpeting the Central Valley were the fertile gardens of the Sierra Miwok and Valley Yokuts Indians, modified and made productive by centuries of harvesting, tilling, sowing, pruning, and burning.

Return of the Bison is the story of how this symbol of the American West was once almost lost to history and of the continuing journey to bring bison back from the brink. Author and naturalist Roger Di Silvestro explores the complex history of the bison's decimation and how a rising awareness of their possible extinction formed the roots of many modern wildlife conservation approaches. Weaving in natural history and fascinating historical context, Di Silvestro traces the decades it took to begin to save the bison, often with little hope and plagued by discouraging setbacks.

Since its inception, however, America’s public land system has been embroiled in controversy - caught in the push and pull between the desire to develop the valuable resources the land holds or conserve them. Alarmed by rising tensions over the use of these lands, hunter, angler, and outdoor enthusiast Mark Kenyon set out to explore the spaces involved in this heated debate, and learn firsthand how they came to be and what their future might hold.

Our world runs on energy! But traditional fossil fuels are doing great damage to the environment, and they will eventually run out. How might solar, water, wind and geothermal power come to our rescue? Listeners can discover how different the world could look in the future with energy sources that are clean and renewable.

The Adirondack region of New York's rural North Country forms the nation's largest State Park, with a territory as large as Vermont. Planning experts view the APA as a triumph of sustainability that balances human activity with the preservation of wild ecosystems. The truth isn't as pretty. The story of the APA, told here for the first time, is a complex, troubled tale of political dueling and communities pushed to the brink of violence.

What happens when the trash you throw out is picked up by the garbage truck? Where does it go? Once the garbage truck picks up the trash in your neighborhood, it goes on a journey to be broken down. A recycling truck might pick it up and make new things or it may be used for a compost heap, or maybe it goes to a landfill where it’s covered with dirt. Find out what happens when a landfill is full!

Travel through Rumpke’s recycling center to find a plastic jug? Trash that can be recycled takes a ride on the conveyor belt to become something new! Try to find the milk jug on the conveyor belt! Trash at the factory goes through many machines to make sure it can be recycled. Can you guess what the milk jug will help make once it leaves the factory? What other types of trash go on the conveyor belt?

What happens to trash after the garbage truck picks it up? Where does it go? The problem of too much trash is hurting the planet. Recycling, reusing, composting and creating new ways to make less trash is a start! Learn to recycle old furniture, and how safer materials are being developed that can easily decompose. People are working hard every day on new ways to have a trash-free future! Are you?